Chase ends in smashed fence

Published 12:00 am Tuesday, July 8, 2003

One victim of a recent crime is curious about where funds to repair his property damage will come from.

According to Warren Hinson, public information officer with the Selma Police Department, officers began chasing what was described in police reports as a 1995 Saturn around 3 a.m. Sunday when the car ran a traffic light on Water Avenue.

The officers activated their blue lights, and when the suspect failed to stop the chase began.

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Moving west down Water Avenue, the suspect turned on Maxey Street and then Hardie Avenue and into James Strong’s driveway.

Tire tracks tell the rest of the story.

From Strong’s driveway, tracks circle the back of the house and then turn toward the street before ending in gnarled wire and a piece of cement uprooted by the incident.

Hinson said the suspect exited the vehicle after damaging the fence and fled the scene.

No arrests have yet been made.

Both Strong and his wife, Della, were sleeping when the incident took place.

Della Strong said her son woke her up after the fact and told her someone had torn the fence down.

Next door neighbor Sadie Robbins also slept through the event, but woke up in time to see the flashing lights of police cars.

By then, though, the suspect’s car had been towed away.

Hinson said officers had traced the car’s owner and identified the suspect. The suspect’s name wasn’t released, but Hinson said an arrest is expected.

Officers involved in Sunday’s incident will determine the exact charges brought against the suspect. They could include failure to obey, eluding and property damage.